A mage? A spell engineer!

Chapter 264 The Last Empty Room

From the moment the airship crossed a certain boundary between the straits, the climate underwent a strange change. By the time the passengers realized what was happening, they were already surrounded by clouds and had arrived in the southeastern region of Istani.

Storm City, named after the ancient adventurers' term for it, "the place where the storm leads us," has its official name, inherited from the Yabir language, as "Ventpols."

Now everyone calls it Storm City in the common language; let the old scholars and the court worry about that awkward old name! In fact, if the cities of the Kingdom of Istani were really prone to storms, they would hardly have grown to their current size; "Fog City" would have been a more appropriate name.

But who cares?

The airport that Rorschach saw was different in style from those of the Holy Kingdom and the Empire. It was a chaotic and audacious super transportation hub, with airship platforms erected on the sea. The island nation did not welcome the flying behemoths that traversed the continent. The Istani people blocked these airships at the mouth of the Tamas River, demanding that travelers disembark from the sky and travel upstream to the capital.

"Proof." The customs officer was a half-elf. He was tall and slender, and his voice was cold and languid. He subtly expressed his impatience with his thin lips as Rorschach pulled out his identification.

However, Rorschach's identity was intriguing enough to make the half-elf raise an eyebrow: "The Empire's mages studied for a year at the Star Tower in Valuva?"

"Yes, is there a problem?" Rorschach activated his mage badge.

The purple light illuminated the half-elf's pale pupils. He seemed to have gotten his hands on something hot, and hurriedly stamped Rorschach's passport to process his entry.

"No problem, have a pleasant trip."

"Thanks."

Fortunately, Storm City wasn't far. The Tamas River was probably the worst river Rorschach had ever seen in this other world. As the boat sailed upstream, the black foam on the surface increased, and when the density of garbage reached its peak, the captain yelled at the passengers, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Storm City!"

The first thing Rorschach did after entering the city was to find a hotel. He chose the inn closest to the Magic Guild, whose clientele consisted of wealthy people, and the corresponding decor and facilities satisfied Rorschach.

However, we encountered a small difficulty during the check-in process.

When he entered, the lobby manager greeted him with a smile and naturally took Rorschach's luggage. Since none of his valuables were in his suitcase, Rorschach accepted his service.

Manager: "Great, we have one last room available."

Meanwhile, the front desk staff said, "I'm sorry, guest, we have no rooms available."

Huh? Luo Xia didn't expect the manager and the receptionist to give completely opposite answers.

"Don't we still have that room?" the manager whispered to the front desk, while flipping through the logbook.

"But that guest didn't check out."

"She hasn't come back for two months! The deposit is no longer enough to cover our losses. Our shop needs to do business; we can't keep it open forever for that woman."

The receptionist hesitated, "But that guest is a monk! What if he comes back and causes us trouble?"

"Isn't this guest also a monk?"

"Weren't you whispering? I heard you!" Rorschach said, preparing to retrieve his luggage. "If the hotel is full, I'll find another one."

"No, sir. There's a room that a guest hasn't checked out of. We've been holding it for the previous guest for two months, and we'll clean it up for you now."

"Is everything alright?"

"No problem!" The hotel was wary of the eccentric spellcaster, so even if a guest disappeared and did not check out, the manager and the front desk dared not vacate the room until today when another spellcaster came to stay.

Seeing that Luo Xia hadn't made up his mind yet, the manager quickly added crucial information: "I'm afraid other hotels you'd like to go to are also full. A lot of people from the Holy Kingdom have come, and they've filled up all the high-end hotels in Storm City, including ours."

It seems that many nobles or other cowardly fellows from Valuana have brought their families to Istani. Unexpectedly, the upheavals in the Holy Kingdom have affected his lodgings. Rorschach, unwilling to endure further travel, accepted the last available room.

He waited for a while in the lobby with tea, and finally arrived at his lodging after receiving the notification.

The boy received the key and opened the door to a nice suite, complete with floor-to-ceiling curtains, a thick carpet, a fireplace, and a bathtub. Rorschach sniffed carefully; there was no unusual odor, only a citrus fragrance, likely from the cleaning agents.

Fortunately, we didn't encounter the case of the previous guest who went missing and whose body was eventually found under the bed/in the bathtub/in the closet.

"Okay, let's book for ten days first." Luo Xia paid the deposit, which made the manager breathe a sigh of relief. Ten days was the deadline Luo Xia set for himself. He was worried about the construction of the mage tower without the owner's supervision and needed to get back to Bain as soon as possible.

He opened the window for ventilation, but a rather pungent smell hit him. In fact, Rorschach's nose had been bothering him ever since he disembarked and stepped into Storm City, and now the air pollutants brought by the gust of wind were giving his mucous membranes a severe blow.

"Achoo!"

It seems that the air filter bubble needs to be kept in place at all times.

After putting away his luggage, Rorschach considered his next move.

How to conduct the investigation? Rorschach himself had no clue, but the travel guide in the room gave him some inspiration.

"The Istani Museum?"

Rorschach obtained the museum's address and information, which displayed numerous archaeological discoveries, plant and animal specimens, and bizarre artifacts. In this world of gods and miracles, the information contained in the artifacts might contain supernatural elements, and due to the symbolic mass extinction following the collapse of the old empire, the saying "the older, the stronger" holds some truth.

"It's still early, let's start with the museum!"

Luo Xia set off in a taxi. The street scene of this city was even more dull than that of the capital. In particular, the majority of people's clothing was black, which made Luo Xia, who was used to the style of the Holy Kingdom, feel a little uncomfortable.

In Valuana, even men without sans-culottes are more fashionable than them.

After Rorschach finished his internal monologue, they arrived at their destination. The museum was built in the style of the old empire's stone architecture, with Hercules carved on the base of each pillar, as if they were the ones who carried the entire hall.

The most spacious main exhibition hall features the most visually striking exhibits – the skeletons of two white dragons.

Their very existence is a legend.

The skeletons were carefully suspended in the center of the exhibition hall, with the massive skull hanging high, as if ready to unleash a deafening dragon's roar at any moment. Every bone gleamed with a cold luster, the color of pearls.

All visitors who see the two skeletons, one large and one small, hold their breath for a moment, because they can feel the fear of being enveloped by the white dragon from the dead objects alone. The curator's recreation of the poses is so lifelike, with outstretched bony wings and deep, empty eye sockets that it sends chills down your spine.

However, what struck Rorschach most deeply was the aura of death emanating from the skeletons. Even dragons—creatures embodying the laws of nature and power—could not escape death, and their remains were even preserved as specimens by creatures weaker than themselves.

He noticed the explanatory sign hanging in the air. Rorschach craned his neck: "A pair of white dragons, donated by the Storm Tower." Couldn't they put the sign on the ground? Looking up at it is exhausting.

As Luo Xia moved around, trying to see the details of the keel from other angles, he bumped into someone. He looked up and instinctively felt that he had bumped into a "child".

"Feel sorry!"

Rorschach looked down and realized the other person was a dwarf.

"Singrev?!"

"Master Rorschach!?"

(End of this chapter)